Things will look and feel different when the NBA resumes the 2019-20 season inside the confines of the Disney World Resort and the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando. The arenas will be empty and quiet. The battle for homecourt advantage won’t mean what it once did. But the final goal remains the same in pursuit of the NBA Championship.
After a four-month layoff, the Jazz departed for Florida, underwent a 48-hour quarantine and regular COVID-19 testing, and began practicing as a team in July. “The good thing is it’s not a completely new team,” said Jazz general manager Justin Zanik. “These players have been together for six months. It’s more re-familiarizing than learning something new. I think that will happened quickly with the level of IQ our players have and the level at which (Jazz head coach Quin Snyder) demands they play.”
The Jazz will play eight “seeding games,” as selected from its remaining regular-season matchups. The Jazz entered the NBA restart with a 41-23 record and sitting in fourth place in the Western Conference.
Once the 16-team playoff field is set, the NBA Playoffs will proceed in a traditional conference-based format with four rounds and best-of-seven series in each round. The 2020 NBA Finals will end no later than Oct. 13.
The resumption of the season on July 30 came following an agreement between the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) on health and safety protocol. The rigorous program, which addresses risks related to COVID-19 and focuses on the well-being of players, coaches, officials and staff, was developed in consultation with public health experts, infectious disease specialists and government officials.
The NBA and the NBPA also agreed in principle that the goal of the season restart would be to find tangible and sustainable ways to address racial inequality across the country. Leaders from the NBA and the NBPA have also discussed strategies to increase Black representation across the NBA and its teams, ensure greater inclusion of Black-owned and operated businesses across NBA business activities, and form an NBA foundation to expand educational and economic development opportunities across the Black community.